Large Lava Fan on the Northwestern Flank of Olympus Mons
NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

Large Lava Fan on the Northwestern Flank of Olympus Mons
PSP_003331_2005  Science Theme: Volcanic Processes


Olympus Mons, the largest volcano in the Solar System is a shield volcano built up by lava flow after lava flow. Like the larger shield volcanoes Mauna Loa and Etna on Earth, many of these lava flows carried the liquid lava in open channels.

In some places these channels break down and the lava spills out, forming a broad fan. In the center of this HiRISE image, you can see a lava channel that has fed many overflows to both sides. The lava was traveling from the southeast toward the north and northwest.

When viewed at full-resolution, the HiRISE image shows a very irregular surface. This is caused by a thick layer of very small particles that are being moved around by the wind. The linear features that could be mistaken for dunes in lower resolution images turn out to look more like wind-eroded ridges, called "yardangs" by geologists.Written by: Laszlo P. Keszthelyi   (3 June 2007)



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Acquisition date:13 April 2007 Local Mars time: 3:29 PM
Latitude (centered):20.4 degrees Longitude (East):224.7 degrees
Range to target site:270.5 km (169.1 miles)Original image scale range:54.1 cm/pixel (with 2 x 2 binning) so objects ~162 cm across are resolved
Map projected scale:50 cm/pixel and North is upMap projection:EQUIRECTANGULAR
Emission angle:6.7 degrees Phase angle:68.9 degrees
Solar incidence angle:63 degrees, with the Sun about 27 degrees above the horizon Solar longitude:218.0 degrees, Northern Autumn
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North azimuth:97 degrees Sub-solar azimuth:335.6 degrees
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North azimuth:270 degreesSub solar azimuth:149.5 degrees

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For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems is the prime contractor for the project and built the spacecraft. The HiRISE camera was built by Ball Aerospace and Technology Corporation and is operated by the University of Arizona. The image data were processed using the U.S. Geological Survey’s ISIS3 software.